Staff Reporter The Tamil Nadu Foodgrains Merchants Association has urged the Central Government to defer the implementation of the Food Safety and Standards Act (FSSA) 2006, which is being implemented since August 5, 2011, till the “defects in the Act” were rectified.
Accompanied by the Dindigul Member of Parliament N. S. V. Chitthan, an association delegation led by president S. P. Jeyapragasam met the Union Minister of Agriculture and Food Processing Industries Sharad Pawar in New Delhi, recently, and submitted a memorandum.
The association said that the FSSA prescribes food quality standards that were akin to European and American standards, which mainly import agricultural produces. Even though the climate and soil types differ across various regions of the country, the Act had specified uniform standards across the country. Qualities like nutritional value, proteins, sugar content and moisture of damaged crops would vary depending upon these factors with uniformity being difficult to achieve.
Further, the Act defines ‘adulteration' on par with other infirmities such as non-compliance in printing of labels or packages.
The offence of misbranding had to be dealt with separately with lesser fines.
Food analytical laboratories
The association contended that the Central Government must establish food analytical laboratories to test quality control in all districts and give accreditation to the laboratories in this sector before implementing the Food Safety and Standards Act.
Mr. Jeyapragasam also called for a single licence to a food business operator as the Act forces one to take a licence to each and every village where a manufacturer sells his/her product.
The Act also mandates that food business operators appoint supervisors with a minimum technical qualification of a degree in science.
As this would cause practical problems, he urged the Centre to enforce this rule only when the workforce of a unit crosses 100.
In view of these problems, he urged Mr. Pawar to defer the implementation of the Act.
He also noted that these issues have been conveyed to the Chief Executive Office of the Food Safety Standards Authority of India, which comes under the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and is implementing the FSSA.
Accompanied by the Dindigul Member of Parliament N. S. V. Chitthan, an association delegation led by president S. P. Jeyapragasam met the Union Minister of Agriculture and Food Processing Industries Sharad Pawar in New Delhi, recently, and submitted a memorandum.
The association said that the FSSA prescribes food quality standards that were akin to European and American standards, which mainly import agricultural produces. Even though the climate and soil types differ across various regions of the country, the Act had specified uniform standards across the country. Qualities like nutritional value, proteins, sugar content and moisture of damaged crops would vary depending upon these factors with uniformity being difficult to achieve.
Further, the Act defines ‘adulteration' on par with other infirmities such as non-compliance in printing of labels or packages.
The offence of misbranding had to be dealt with separately with lesser fines.
Food analytical laboratories
The association contended that the Central Government must establish food analytical laboratories to test quality control in all districts and give accreditation to the laboratories in this sector before implementing the Food Safety and Standards Act.
Mr. Jeyapragasam also called for a single licence to a food business operator as the Act forces one to take a licence to each and every village where a manufacturer sells his/her product.
The Act also mandates that food business operators appoint supervisors with a minimum technical qualification of a degree in science.
As this would cause practical problems, he urged the Centre to enforce this rule only when the workforce of a unit crosses 100.
In view of these problems, he urged Mr. Pawar to defer the implementation of the Act.
He also noted that these issues have been conveyed to the Chief Executive Office of the Food Safety Standards Authority of India, which comes under the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and is implementing the FSSA.
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